


J-e-a-l-o-u-s-y

by ZJpotter



Series: Friends Don't Lie [2]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Eggo analogies, Gen, Steve and his new kid
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-17
Updated: 2018-02-17
Packaged: 2019-03-20 10:42:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13715973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZJpotter/pseuds/ZJpotter
Summary: “How about that new girl….Mayfield? Max Mayfield?”Steve and El have a talk over Eggos and El learns a new word.





	J-e-a-l-o-u-s-y

“This has got to be the unhealthiest thing I’ve ever seen,” Steve says as he watches Eleven make the monstrosity she calls food. 

Steve has had his fair share of junk food, but this has got to be the icing on the cake. It’s a mountain of Eggos layered with whipped cream and leftover Halloween candy. It can give you cavities by just looking at it. 

Eleven slides the plate closer to him when she finishes. Steve stares at the curly haired girl apprehensively. She stares back with soft big eyes. 

“No. I am not eating that.” 

El shrugs and brings the plate closer to her to cut her first piece. Her lips quirk up in delight as she eats the Eggo. She immediately cuts the next piece and then the next. 

“Slow down and chew your food,” Steve says. 

She does, but only slightly. The stack shortens by two Eggos and Steve makes the decision to slide the plate towards him. Eleven whines and makes a weak attempt at grabbing the plate. 

“If you eat all this, you’re going to get sick,” Steve says. 

Steve cuts a piece off without thinking and puts it in his mouth. He feels lightheaded as soon as the sugar touches his taste buds. How the kid manages to eat this he’ll never know. 

Steve slides the plate back towards her and El reaches for another piece. It’s the first time since she’s been having an actual appetite lately so no matter how unhealthy her choice of food is he’s going to give it to her. He can worry about vegetables later. 

His stay at the cabin started shortly after the almost apocalypse. Going to school with a concussion was not the best idea. He’d passed out in the middle of class. Chief Hopper took it upon himself to look after him (really Ms.Byers had taken it upon herself to have the chief watch him. She was deeply concern but she had her hands tied with her sons and his parents were pretty unreliable sometimes.) It really wasn’t that bad. At first, it was mostly ice packs and medicine and feeling awful. Then he started getting better and he had to watch Eleven, the punk telekinetic who saved them all, while the chief was away. 

Eleven sleeps most of the time. She’s still out of it and still looks pale and kind of sickly but she’s pretty good company even if she doesn’t say much. 

“Mike.” El doesn’t look up from eating. 

“What about him?” Steve asks. 

“Gave me Eggos.” She smiles like she’s remembering something and Steve scoots up so he’s closer to the table. 

“How’d you meet him anyway?” 

He’s been briefed on what happened last year, on what exactly he fought in the Byers house and where it came from and where Will and Barbara had gone. The details about Eleven didn’t go into much detail except: the little girl who saved us. 

“Ran away,” El says smile disappearing. 

“And Dustin and Lucas?” 

“Ran. Away.” She looks up now with a warning look. 

Steve holds his hands up in surrender. He is not about to be the victim of her anger. He doesn’t bother asking about Will. So he asks about someone else instead. 

“How about that new girl….Mayfield? Max Mayfield?” 

El actually scowls this time. 

“I take it you don’t like her?” Steve knows that was an understatement, but hey, if he can’t make big-brother comments what can he do? 

"Saw her with Mike." 

A snort escapes Steve and it turns into barely suppressed laughter. He understands. He understands her scowl and why she hadn’t accepted Max’s greeting. And it really is quite funny. 

“You’re worried they like each other aren’t you?” Steve asks, “They don’t. Mike doesn’t even like Max.” 

El doesn’t answer. 

“You’re jealous and that’s okay.” 

El tilts her head to the side a bit, “Gel-us?” 

“Jealous. J-e-a-l-o-u-s.” Among other things on the guide to taking care of Eleven the chief gave him, teaching her the words she didn’t know was one of them, “It means that you want something someone else has. I have five eggos and you have none. How do you feel?” 

“Bad. I want them.” 

“That’s jealousy right there. It can be about people too. You’re jealous because you wanted the attention Mike was giving Max. You saw them together. You’re jealous.” 

Maybe he should take up psychology if he goes to college. 

El frowns, “Do you get jealous?” 

“Yeah. Everyone does.” 

There’s a small pause before El looks like she’s trying to fit together a puzzle, “Nancy?” 

“What about her?” 

From what he knows, Nancy is okay. She’s alive and okay. He’s not intentionally avoiding her, no that’s not it, it’s just this isolationist cabin makes it awful hard to talk to people.   
Yep. That’s it. 

“Girlfriend.” 

“No,” Steve says voice cracking, “We’re not.” 

“Mike- 

“We’re not together. Anymore.” 

He had called it off. He had been the one to let her go because if he was completely honest with himself he was a rotten boyfriend. Nancy deserves better. 

“Johnathan,” El says, “and Nancy.” 

He doesn’t know how she knows that and doesn’t bother finding out, “Yeah they’re…something. Involved. Something like that. Don’t blame him alright? He’s good.” 

“Jealous.” El’s smirking. It’s a soft one but a smirk nonetheless. 

“I’m not jealous.” 

“You’re jealous and that’s okay.” 

Steve huffs, “I’m not jealous okay. Nancy and Johnathan are together now. I wasn’t good with Nancy. Nancy doesn’t love me, she loves him. I have to let her be happy with Johnathan.” 

El hums in thought, “Talk.”

Steve just stares at her because the last thing he wants to do with those two right now is talk. 

“Talking solves problems. Shake hands.” 

His first thought is that he’s confused. The second is that this kid is pretty smart. Here he is, a high school senior, the former King Steve, being advised by a girl who hasn’t had much social interaction. Yet it’s a great piece of advice. (He might have thought of himself if he wasn’t so stubborn.) 

“So I talk to Nancy and then what?” 

“You learn to be friends.” 

She’s too smart and Steve tells her so. Eleven gives a bashful smile. 

“I’ll talk to Nancy. On one condition. You talk to Max.” 

“No.” 

“Yes. What’d you just say? ‘Talking solves problems’. You and Mike have to get along with Max. I won’t talk to Nancy if you don’t try and talk to Max.” 

Eleven looks away for a moment and then stares straight at him, “Promise.” 

“I promise.” 

Eleven nods satisfied. Steve takes her plate and stands up. 

“Come on, we have to wash dishes.” 

El wrinkles her nose at that. 

“Don’t think I’m doing this alone. I wash, you dry. Hurry up and we can catch All My Children before you fall asleep.” 

“I won’t sleep.” 

“If you fall asleep you have to give me some candy.” 

“If I don’t no peas.” El says as she walks over to the kitchen with Steve. 

El falls asleep mid episode and Steve victoriously takes some candy himself. He supposes it won’t be so bad, talking to Nancy. If he can face demogorgons and demodogs and the Upside Down with a baseball bat, he can do anything. Right?


End file.
